The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an island country off the northern edge of South America, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela.  The island of Trinidad was a Spanish colony from the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1498 to the arrival of British warships in 1797.  During the same period, the island of Tobago changed hands among Spanish, British, French, and Dutch colonizers. Trinidad and Tobago were ceded to Britain in 1802, merged into one country in 1889, and then obtained independence in 1962.  Unlike most of the English-speaking Caribbean, the country's economy is primarily industrial, with an emphasis on petroleum and petrochemicals.

Trinidad and Tobago is known for its Carnival and as the birthplace of steelpan, limbo, and the music styles of calypso, soca and chutney.  Among birdwatchers, the country is known as the “Land of the Hummingbird.”  We travelled here with JB Journeys/Travis (Texas) Audubon Society, led by Laurie Foss.

We were in Trinidad and Tobago for 8 days:  5 days at the Asa Wright Nature Center in northern Trinidad and 3 days at the Cuffie River Lodge on the island of Tobago.  Everywhere we went, we saw birds – lots of them – a total of 181 different species.  As noted on previous birding trips we wouldn’t have seen most of these (not to mention identifying them) without excellent guides in both locations.  Thanks also to fellow travelers for sharing photos of  some of the colorful critters we saw on this trip. 

Trinidad

Our lodging in Trinidad was the Asa Wright Nature Center is located in the Arima Valley along Trinidad’s Northern Range.  Much of the property was once cocoa and coffee plantations, but second-growth has taken over with vines and epiphytes.  It is lush and green – like being deep in a tropical rainforest. 

Around the grounds, there are plenty of birds to be seen – with the help of our guides to show us where to look.  Here we saw the postman butterfly, the common potoo (which looks like a dead limb) and a tiger lizard.  We saw and heard the the barred antshrike, which works like a sunrise alarm clock; male is black and white, female is brown.  

 

 

We hiked to Dunston Cave to view a breeding colony of oilbirds – the only nocturnal flying fruit-eating birds in the world.   This is supposed to be one of the most accessible oilbird caves in the entire world – if that’s true, we won’t be signing up to visit the other ones.  Here we had to walk down a steep hill and then wade in the river to get into the cave to see the birds.   

 

Watching birds from the veranda is an experience not to be forgotten.   The veranda runs the length of the building, with hummingbird feeders and tables of fruit to attract birds. As well as agouti that grab anything that hits the ground.

 

 

Hummingbirds were everywhere – pretty nifty to see eight new species before breakfast!  By the end of our stay here we saw white-necked jacobin, rufous-breasted hermit, blue-chinned sapphire, white-chested emerald, brown violet ear, and copper-rumped and  hummingbirds. Seen, but not pictured, were the green hermit and the tufted coquette.

Less numerous but equally colorful were the violaceous euphonia and the honeycreepers – one purple, the other green (turquoise). 

 

 

For sheer entertainment value, nothing could beat the bananaquit –a little black and yellow bird sometimes known as the ‘sugar bird’ for its affinity to feeders stocked with sugar water.  Occasionally, they all attack one feeder; see the video below for a look at this feathered feeding frenzy.

Other birds seen from the veranda:  bearded bellbird, blue-gray tanager, crested oropendula, groove billed toucan, palm tanager, and silver-beaked tanager.  Several of these were seen and photographed using a spotting telescope – gotta love the technology!  

We took several field trips away from the lodge to see other birds in other habitats.  One such destination was the Aripo Livestock Research Station, known for its work in developing the high-performance, heat-tolerant ‘buffalypso.’   

It’s also a good place for birding. 

Our guide stopped the van by a tree near the entrance, set up the spotting scope, and invited us to take a look at a pair of tropical screech owls.  Just like that.  He knew these guys liked to roost in this tree during the day – we’d have never in a million years found them on our own.

 

We wandered the roads throughout the property – not quite as easy as sitting on the veranda, but we saw some beautiful birds and our first spectacled caiman:  yellow-hooded blackbird, green-rumped parrotlet, and red-breasted blackbird. 

 

The nearby lowland Aripo Savannah offered a chance to see still more types of birds.  Here are three: great kiskadee, southern lapwing, and a pair of peregrine falcons.

 

Before the sun went down, we had dinner at a shelter on the grounds of the agricultural center.  The folks from the lodge sent along food to sustain us on our night-time bird watching here.  We did see more birds – lots of white-tailed nightjars and common paraques – no pictures (just seeing them was a challenge).  

On another day, we headed out of the mountains to Trinidad’s east coast.  Here the tall Moriche palm is common – it is a favorite food for monkeys and macaws, and we planned to see both.  We had a picnic lunch along the beach, but as we headed south, the recent rains had flooded the road.   We plunged onward, into the Nariva Swamp – the largest freshwater swamp on the island - it was worth the effort.  We saw several species of raptors, including the yellow-headed caracara and the aplomado falcon.

 

 

Here we found the wattled jacana, as well as other species – the orange-winged parrot, the red-bellied macaw and the blue and yellow macaw - that flew too high for pictures.  

 

Along the edges of the swamp, we passed many small farms – most had a water buffalo or two, and they attracted plenty of cattle egrets. 

Another all-day excursion took us over the Northern Range toward the northern coast of Trinidad.  From the mountains, we had some beautiful ocean views, but we spent most of our time looking up into the trees – trying to spot those sneaky birds that our guide insisted were up there. 

 

We did see several new species up here – the squirrel cuckoo, the collared trogon, and the golden olive woodpecker. 

Our last day on Trinidad was spent on the western side of the island, with two very different stops.  Our first visit was to Yerreté, a private home the owner has at least fifty feeder stations offering unparalleled, up-close views of the wide array of Trinidad’s hummingbird species. Twelve of the island’s 13 recorded species have been seen at the feeders – we added five hummers to our list:  black-throated mango, green-throated mango, ruby topaz, long-billed starthroat, and little hermit. 

Our afternoon visit was to Caroni Swamp National Park, a mangrove forest that contains several types of mangroves, thriving in this unique brackish water community. We took a boat ride through the swamp to look for birds and other residents.  Here we spotted a tree boa constrictor and some four-eyed fish.

 

The REAL reason for a visiting this swamp is that it is the home of the magnificent scarlet ibis.  They return to their mangrove roosts at dusk, so we pulled up the boat, prepared rum punch and binoculars, and sat back to enjoy the show. 

 

And it was a spectacle – thousands of brilliantly colored ibis, joined by snowy egrets, blue herons, cormorants, tri-color herons, and great egrets.  Soon the trees looked like they’d been decorated for Christmas – one of the most dramatic natural moments we’ve ever experienced. 

 

  

Tobago

The island of Tobago forms the final link in the chain of mountain ranges extending from the Venezuelan Coastal Range.  Tobago is drier and windier than Trinidad – similar in climate and rainfall to other Caribbean islands. 

Our lodging here was the Cuffie River Lodge, located in the western hemisphere’s oldest protected tropical rainforest, at the edge of the island’s main ridge. The open-air design of the building gives great opportunities for bird-watching, indoors and out ….

Just outside the lodge, there were hummingbird feeders and fruit hanging to attract birds – with great views for the humans waiting for breakfast.  Here we got our best views of two of the prettiest birds in the islands:  the Trinidad motmot (tennis racket tail) and the rufous-tailed jacamar (hummingbird on steroids).  We also got a good look at the noisiest bird on the islands, the rufous-vented chachalaca. 

 

There was plenty of action at the hummingbird feeders as well.  Here we rounded out our list of hummers with the beautiful white-tailed saberwing. 

Hiking along the Cuffie River Trail near the lodge was just plain hot, but we did finally get a good look at a beautiful little bird known as the blue-backed manakin.  This species has a curious breeding display, in which two males perch next to each other and jump up and down alternately, giving a buzzing call. When a female approaches, the two perform a vertical circling movement. There’s a nice video on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3yuaVvPFAo.

 

Any place is a good place for a picnic.  The lodge packed us a lunch of huge sandwiches, juice, fruit and pound cake for dessert. 

Hiking the Gilpin Trace Trail took us deep into the rainforest, much shadier and cooler.  Lots of looking up and lots of birds, none of whom chose to pose.

 

For a change of pace, we headed to the seaside village of Speyside, a picturesque spot with nice views of Little Tobago Island.

 

We boarded a glass-bottom boat for the ride over to Little Tobago Island, one of the nation’s most important wildlife sanctuaries.  Along the way, we had views of some beautiful coral formations, loaded with colorful fish and sea turtles.

Once ashore, we hiked to the top for a look back at Tobago and a look at the sheer cliffs on the other side of Little Tobago.  Here the red-billed tropicbird, red-footed boobies, and others make their homes – while the magnificent frigatebird soars overhead looking for a chance to steal a fish or two. 

 

We got good looks at birds on the cliff using the spotting scope, but we also got an up-close look at a nesting red-billed tropicbird – calmly doing her thing, right along the main trail. 

 

With one last look at one of Tobago’s scenic spots, we posed for the end-of-trip pictures and headed back to winter weather.